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Aligbe: Point-to-point operations not profitable for airlines

…Urges carriers to interline to survive

 

Chief Executive Officer of Belujane Consult, Chris Aligbe said it would be very difficult for any airline to be successful with point-to-point operations stressing that for Nigerian carriers to be profitable, they would need to interline or go into codeshare agreements that would help them distribute their passengers beyond points beyond.

Aligbe, while speaking on Channels Television’s Business Update on Wednesday monitored by Aviation Metric explained that Nigerian carriers like the defunct Nigeria Airways which was removed from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) clearing house as far back as 1986, Bellview, Arik, Medview and currently Air Peace which operate to London have only about 30% of the traffic going to the British capital.

He says, “When you are operating point to point to London, you only have about 30% of the traffic going to London because it is only those stopping in London that you can carry. Those that are going beyond London;  that market is not for you. And of that 30% that is going to London, some are frequent fliers on Virgin Atlantic and British Airways; you can’t get them. You have lost that market.”

“Interlining arrangement came in 1947. I told you if you are not operating at the level of the person you are interlining, there will be a liability. If you fail to meet your obligation, the other airline might be sued because you can sue an airline from anywhere it is taking off from. The third level is associate with a global alliance member. That happens when an alliance member invests in your airline like KLM invested in Kenya Airways, like the beleaguered Nigeria Air with Ethiopian Airlines.

“Ethiopian Airlines is an associate of global Alliance member and becomes an affiliate of an alliance member and the final level before you become an alliance member. There are three global alliances; One World is led by British Airways and American Airlines. There is a Skyteam and the largest is Star Alliance where you have Air France-KLM, Delta”.

Speaking on the recently conducted audit of the country’s aviation system by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) in which the country dropped 25 points by scoring 71% from the 96% some five years ago, Aligbe advised that rather than dwell or wrangle over it, the country should try as much as possible to close the gaps noticed by the global aviation regulatory body.

He equally stated that all the agencies involved, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) should endeavour to close the gaps, adding that it happens everywhere.

“But when you don’t accept the situation, we will be living in self-denial and we need to address the issue and get back to where we should be. What is necessary is for us to take the result and work to improve the situation. If we were at 96% per cent before, let us stay at 96% even if we don’t go higher because 96% is very high to 90%; there is a gap, and we have noticed it, we should close it rather than go about with this argument here and there.”

“No country wants to drop when such audits are conducted because it will first give an impression that standard is dropping but it doesn’t make our airspace unsafe. All that it means is that when you notice a gap, all you need to do is to quickly close the gap. It is a drop, yes but we should not be dropping that way.”

He berated many of the operators for their lackadaisical attitude towards passengers during delayed or cancelled flights, hinting that the solution to solving the problem was for the carriers to interline amongst themselves.

He admitted that there are challenges beyond the control of the carriers but chided them for other issues like the inability to reduce their schedules whenever they are in shortage of airplanes.

“They quarrel with you when you tell them about interlining, you tell them to look at their schedule when they are down to two or three aircraft and to make sure they operate properly, they will not listen thinking you are just criticizing them for nothing.”

“Some people say stop foreign airlines from going to many destinations so that when they bring passengers, our airlines can take them. Our airlines are not in a position to offer that kind of service of interlining with foreign airlines because they can’t interline with themselves.

“A foreign airline who brings in passengers and you cancel the flight, that foreign airline, there is what we call carrier liability, the liability of you disappointing the passengers. Today, when they cancel flights, you wait two weeks or one month before you get your refund. In the US and other places, it is instant; you give the passengers their money immediately. If you fail, the passengers can sue.”

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